China’s GDP Up 7.6%, as Expected

China’s growth fell well below what was more than 10% before the recession. It had recovered some last year and the earliest part of this one. Growth dropped to 8.1% in the first quarter of 2012. It fell to 7.6% for the second quarter, a number that disappoints many, but was in line with most expectations.

China’s growth has been hurt by several things, the first among them a sharp slowing of GDP and in some cases recessions in the European Union. Growth has slowed considerably or stopped completely in Japan, the United Kingdom and United States.

It is also likely that China’s huge middle class has slowed its consumption, due to worry that most of the economy in the People’s Republic has slowed and that jobs even may be at risk.

According to MarketWatch:

IHS Global Insight analysts said Friday’s data meant China’s economy had cooled for six straight quarters, exceeding the five consecutive quarters of cooling seen in a financial crisis during the late 1990s that ended a rapid period of growth for the Asian region.

“This is a less vicious downslide compared with the Global Financial Crisis if measured by peak-to-trough deceleration, but nearly as bad as in the Asian Financial Crisis,” IHS analyst Xianfang Ren said in a note to clients.

Douglas A. McIntyre